As the March 30 deadline looms for Korean tiremaker Kumho Tire regarding its sale to Qingdao Doublestar, its labor union has decided to finally hold a vote on whether to accept the acquisition bid by the Chinese tiremaker. The union has been battling against the deal, putting a final resolution at risk, creating headaches for the state-run Korea Development Bank (KDB). KDB has been urging that the union accept the deal.
According to The Korean Herald, one unnamed unionist said, “We discovered that there are no more domestic investors who are willing to invest or acquire us out of fear of the government.”
The deal with Doublestar would be a $600 million (USD) investment for a 45 percent stake in Kumho Tire. According to reports, the fact that the union has decided to hold a vote and talk about the deal shows the workers are likely to accept the proposal. As an added incentive, the government has offered a 200 billion won ($188 million USD) of fresh funding should the Qingdao investment go through. But if the talks fail, KDB says it will apply for court receivership.
